Magnets are made of iron, nickel, cobalt, or steel. To preserve a bar magnet, you should store it with another magnet pointing in the opposite direction to maintain its magnetic field. When a magnet breaks, its magnetic field also breaks into smaller magnetic fields. An electromagnet generates a magnetic field through a coil of wire when electric current passes through; placing an iron core in the coil makes the magnetic field stronger. Materials like iron, nickel, and cobalt are magnetic, while materials like aluminum, copper, glass, plastic, wood, and silver are non-magnetic.